The U.S.’s most prominent crypto exchange reported a surge in revenue and trading volume to close out its second-best year on record. Coinbase almost doubled its net revenue to $2.2 billion in Q4 from the prior quarter, beating analysts’ expectations of $1.8 billion.
Coinbase’s net income skyrocketed 1,600% from the prior quarter to $1.3 billion. The company did not report its earnings per share. In an indication of renewed fervor for crypto from retail investors, trading volume on the exchange grew 176% to $94 billion from the third to fourth quarters. Despite the increased revenue, shares initially dropped 5% to about $285 in after-hours trading before rebounding past $300 minutes later.
“The last few months have demonstrated a sea change in the regulatory environment, unlocking new opportunities for Coinbase and the crypto industry,” the company wrote in its letter to shareholders.
The crypto exchange’s strong year-end results capped off its second-best yearly totals. It posted $6.3 billion in total revenue and $2.6 billion in net income in 2024.
In 2021, when the last crypto bull market raged and the company first went public, Coinbase rode the crypto hype train to notch almost $7.4 billion in revenue and $3.6 billion in net income. Its stock soared above $340, but when enthusiasm for crypto waned in a prolonged Crypto Winter, Coinbase saw its business and market value fall.
Shares plummeted more than 90% to as low as almost $30 in 2023, and revenue dropped below $3 billion that same year.
Moreover, Coinbase found itself in regulatory crosshairs. After the fall of FTX and the arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried, former CEO of the failed crypto exchange, the Securities and Exchange Commission accelerated a prolonged crackdown on prominent crypto companies.
As Coinbase fought off the SEC, the crypto tides turned, and the public company saw its revenues return to near 2021 highs.
Revenue almost doubled to $1.6 billion from the last quarter in 2023 to the first quarter in 2024 on the back of a Bitcoin ETF–fueled resurgence in crypto interest. Coinbase also joined in with a suite of crypto companies to influence elections up and down the federal ballot.
In November, as its revenues continued to outpace 2023 lows, Coinbase saw its stock surge in value on the back of the election of Donald Trump and a slate of other pro-crypto politicians.
In early December, Coinbase’s shares jumped to an all-time high of $343 before dipping below $300 in January.